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Over on expeditionportal.com there is a guy with a Libby that posted a trip computer avg number of something like 32 mpg. Can't remember if he has over sized tires on the Jeep or not. Not verified - that said not surprised either. Keep it on cruise at around 100km/h I wouldn't be terribly surprised on stockish tires.

Tom H (old_man) over on NAXJA says he gets something like 22-24 mpg pushing 35s with his stroker. That's on 87/regular gas too.

IIRC the diesel Cruisers get in the low to mid 20s consistently with a light pedal.

My old Suzuki SJ-413 used to get high 20s on 33s (Imp mpg). But that is another experience if you will. Staying under 100km/h in a tin can in four lane highway traffic is not fun. LOL

FWIW, my XJ as it sits now on 235s and pushing a ARB bar on the front gets 21-22 mpg. Not sure what'll happen when the 33s go on.

well i drive a 5 speed 12v cummins, and i get about 30mpg under easy driving, wich sound skool, but with diesel being so much more, i would pay about the same in gas if i was getting a few mpg less. what abouts isuzu troopers? or dodge raiders? i do love the reliability of a 22r. i think a tpyota PU is still the best move. any thoughts?

In a gas powered full size the same vintage as your 12v Dodge you'd be lucky to break 20 mpg - ever. Thank your stars for the diesel.

Troopers and Raiders are cool. Some guys have built Troopers...IIRC there is a bunch of solid Isuzu stuff over at 4x4wire.com. The engine is a GM of some flavour depending on vintage. IFS so depending on what you have in mind that may be an issue - either to limit where you go or to start a mega SFA swap. Dodge Raiders (rebadged Mitsubishi) are just old at this point. Very little aftermarket support as well. Not even certain there is much in the replacement parts systems. Hey, if you like them go for it but it will be an uphill battle.

Personally, I feel a Jeep or a TLC is the way to go. If you plan to leave North America on expedition get a TLC over the Jeep. If there is a diesel version of the same truck you settle on go for the diesel.

If you stay in NA you can pretty much pick anything with little issue. I have no desires to go outside of NA (lived overseas before) so I went Jeep. That plus I wanted something newish versus dealing with a "restomod" (BT/dt - PITA). And something cheap to run vis-á-vis parts, spares, servicing, etc.

There's also Nissans and Rovers. Nissan Patrols are TLC grade equipment but very rare since they weren't imported to NA. There's the old hard body Nissans as well. Kinda small and under powered - about the same size as an XJ I guess. Rovers are really cool but they don't have the best reliability reputation. The Discoveries are hard to pass up at the prices they are asking (cheap!) but you will have issues with the engine at some point - just a matter of time. Re-engined with a SBF/SBC would be pretty neat. Love the trucks, just not the engine.

Toy mini stuff is bullet proof. 22R is a great engine. I don't fit in the Toy mini stuff so never delved into them much.

I like modern stuff. Look at stuff that is late 90s or newer unless you can fluke into something like a BJ62 that has been all gone through and up to spec. Where we are in the salt belt the newer the better.

I guess you can barely consider mine an expedition vehicle so far,
but I have alot of plans for it, and LOVE the aspect of the expedition setups.
It is also my daily driver, so I have to be careful how I set it up, none of this stuff makes it any lighter

For those of you traveling with these big GPS screens, how do you like them?
Not sure I would like that large a screen blocking my forward view.

I have been playing around with laptop based car PCs for a while. I have a nice little 8 inch touch screen I sometimes mount in my tow vehicle, but not sure I would ever mount it in an offroad vehicle as all of my wheelers get way to filthy inside. (I like driving with windows down, or better yet doors off.) The touch screens do not seem to like dirt and dust.

Lately in my Superduty I just sit the entire laptop on the tranny hump and have a good view of the laptop screen for GPS. I have done similar in my Samurai with an OLD laptop on the passenger floor. (It got filthy, but stayed dry even in the rain with no roof on.)

Its well made, as must all Fujitsu stuff is, but its not water proof, or rubberized some like Tough Books, etc.
It is a touch screen though, although it works best with your fingernail, rather than your fleshy finger tip.

It can be a bit large, I found it blocked less of my view mounted above the rear view mirror than it did down on the dash.

Below it is a Garmin 60csX handheld unit, which I can connect to the Fuji via USB.
You can also use a small BlueTooth GPS receiver with it.

I have a Garmin Nuvi 750W that I use in the Jeep now, I find it MUCH easier to use, the touch screen is more sensitive.

Yes, that is actually a little white Jeep on there as the position marker
Its insane how much it looks like my Jeep, it even has a roof rack !

Hey Root Moose, that guy asking about what rig to buy lives in Ohio (or at least his sig says as much) so the RHD TLC's are out for him. They can't import them into the U.S.

But the XJ is a good one to build on, the 4.0 is pretty reliable, last a couple hundred thousand miles without much complaining. As for mileage on 33's, if i ever get the lift installed on my '98, i'll let you know.
With 31's i was getting 400-420 km's to a tank, and keeping it up around 110-115 kph.

A mount for a laptop...
There is a kickass one, no idea what the company name is, but i could find out. It's got 3-4 elbows and they all tighten down. You can swivel the thing around, raise it up, and they have custom mounts depending on the vehicle make/model. I've seen one in a friend's Ram and it was solid, and nice in terms of movement.

The hi-lift jack, tools, air compressor, spare tire and all much of the camping equipment are stored under the sleeping platform. I left just enough room between the platform and the tailgate for removable refridgerator and a cooler.

Picture taken at Browns Lake on the other side of Mt. Antero in Chaffee County, CO

The new topper definitely makes for more comfortable (and dry) camping than the old bed tent. Photo take at Grizzly Lake in Chaffee County, CO.

07 Chevy 2500 hd classic. 79 hp ford front with Chevy outers, cross over, ford style cage radious arms and coils.14 bolt rear, locked with factory disk brakes. 6.0 engine, 2wd 4l80e trans, divorced ford 205 twin sticked t-case. The advantage of keeping the 2wd trans is the availability o them and price verse the 4wd version. This also allowed me to bypass having to use a factory chain driven computer controlled t-case and the issue I would have had with the V.S.S. if I were to swap to a 205 or stak/atlas or other. My front and rear driveshafts are also the same and full slip with just 1 in difference between the front and rear. I can carry just one spare stub shaft, and one spare drive shaft since the front acts as a back up spare for the rear.

4.56 gears with llr16 michelin xls and a 34 gallon tank. A.R.E. aluminum utility shell insulated with open access on one side and storage on another. Also have a roll out bed rack. Since I run a fire extinguisher business I also carry on board n20 and air tools should I need them.

The truck is bare bones, no power windows, door locks etc..hell it does not even have a seat belt or door chime

Future plans are to build a false floor at top of the wheel well height and use the roll out bed for storage of tools, supplies, gear and spares. A well built roof rack and more fuel capacity is a must. I want to build a rear bumper and redo the front bumper and have a recessed winch as well. Other plans are to cut out the rockers and integrate 250 wall 2x6 in a factory looking set up to act as a buffer.

Next up is the cage and mounting the corbeau suspension seats and tearing into the 6.0 with heads/cam/headers/high flow cats and trying to mount an xj snorkel on it.

I do feel its tall but I lik the skinny tucked tires and they are stong as well. I may look into a 40 inch tire though.

far from done, but for just a year old I am trying to break her in slow..

When I want to explore and go camping or long trips with some moderate wheeling I want to have a rig that is sealed up to do it in and sleep off the ground as well. Other than that it is my extra work truck, 4x4 rig and used to tow the buggy.

It is nice to see a late model GM truck done right for a change instead of the usual chromed out IFS lift kits, 22’+ bling bling wheels and wanna be off-road tires.
Nice work!

Hey Root Moose, that guy asking about what rig to buy lives in Ohio (or at least his sig says as much) so the RHD TLC's are out for him. They can't import them into the U.S.

But the XJ is a good one to build on, the 4.0 is pretty reliable, last a couple hundred thousand miles without much complaining. As for mileage on 33's, if i ever get the lift installed on my '98, i'll let you know.
With 31's i was getting 400-420 km's to a tank, and keeping it up around 110-115 kph.

A mount for a laptop...
There is a kickass one, no idea what the company name is, but i could find out. It's got 3-4 elbows and they all tighten down. You can swivel the thing around, raise it up, and they have custom mounts depending on the vehicle make/model. I've seen one in a friend's Ram and it was solid, and nice in terms of movement.

those are RAM mounts tight?

yes, i am from ohio. haha. i think ill go xj. maybe a later model xj. whats a good suspension for a expo xj? i dont want soem crawler crap for it. something good at high speeds and decent cornering, on and off road. also, what abotu a zj with a 4.0l? ehat about suspensions for a zj (same requirements as the xj)? they are confy, haha... im am DEFINATELY interested in laptop mount. id like to be able to mount it and still have room for a pass. also, who makes a good GPS card for laptops? thanks!

yes, i am from ohio. haha. i think ill go xj. maybe a later model xj. whats a good suspension for a expo xj? i dont want soem crawler crap for it. something good at high speeds and decent cornering, on and off road. also, what abotu a zj with a 4.0l? ehat about suspensions for a zj (same requirements as the xj)? they are confy, haha... im am DEFINATELY interested in laptop mount. id like to be able to mount it and still have room for a pass. also, who makes a good GPS card for laptops? thanks!

You'll get twice as many answers about the best suspension as the number of people you ask.

On an XJ I'm a big fan of the long arm stuff. Any of TNT, FullTraction or Clayton would be good. Partial to the FT lately because it is four link versus radius arm. I don't like the RockKrawler three link and BDS is newish and I don't know much about it.

You'll get twice as many answers about the best suspension as the number of people you ask.

On an XJ I'm a big fan of the long arm stuff. Any of TNT, FullTraction or Clayton would be good. Partial to the FT lately because it is four link versus radius arm. I don't like the RockKrawler three link and BDS is newish and I don't know much about it.

Do you have kids or plan to have kids? If not a two door XJ would be a cool setup.

I'm basically watching the clock count until the day my boys are too big for the back of the XJ.

The XJ is pretty plush compared to some of the rigs I've had. Definitely a decent ride that you can drive all day and not get beat up.

yeah, im thinking xj proally. though i like the disco's one early 90's range rovers. though peopel say they suck? i dont see how. how tall of a lift do i need to run? it will be a DD also. what about later land cruisers? what do you think? id liek to buy a good running rig for about 1500-2000 and build it into a good expo rig over a year or so.

It is nice to see a late model GM truck done right for a change instead of the usual chromed out IFS lift kits, 22’+ bling bling wheels and wanna be off-road tires.
Nice work!

thanks, its now on some 41 inch radial iroks and black steel rock crawlers. The aluminum factory rims were getting chipped up real bad from abuse on the edges. And it seems I can no longer easily find the michelin xls locally I went with a tire I could easily get a added bonus is I run irok on the buggy... so spares for one will work on the other

yeah, im thinking xj proally. though i like the disco's one early 90's range rovers. though peopel say they suck? i dont see how. how tall of a lift do i need to run? it will be a DD also. what about later land cruisers? what do you think? id liek to buy a good running rig for about 1500-2000 and build it into a good expo rig over a year or so.

LRs in general can have some problems. This is second hand info so take it with a grain of salt.

If you get a Disco with lots of accessories like power windows and such there can be gremlins.

Rust can be a problem. The steel under the aluminum panels can rust badly. The seam where the roof attaches to the outer panels can be a problem to.

They leak (windows, sun roofs).

The engine is really sensitive to overheating. If they get overheated there is a potential for a cylinder lining dropping in its bore. (Rover V8 is all aluminum)

They get horrible gas mileage and are underpowered for the amount of gas they burn.

Probably other stuff I'm forgetting.

That said, I love the look of the trucks. Swapping a SBC/4L60E into one would be pretty cool (Mark's adapters). IF we got the diesels over here I'd be all over one and deal with the more minor niggly stuff that goes wrong.

Supposedly the 97+ Discos are a touch better than the earlier ones - that is when BMW owned them and had gotten some QA into the factory lines. May be heresay, read it on the internet.

How much lift? For an expo rig design around the tire size that makes sense with your engine and tire availability. I'm a fan of 265/75R16 and 285/85R16. Sort of the standard full size pickup truck tire sizes that you can get anywhere. That's a 32" or 33" tire but a little narrower than the normal floatation sizes. For something with more than a 105-110" wheelbase I'd start looking at 35" tires. The big thing with an expo rig is not to get too carried away with tire size and height.

In your price range, XJ is pretty much all you can do. You won't get a good TLC for that price range. You could get a decent FZJ80 for around $6-8k I think. Same with FJ6x. It will need some work though. For that price range you could get a built XJ if you look around. There is a really sweet, stroked SWB MJ for sale in Wisconsin right now if a pickup is your thing. I think he is asking $4.5k. Stock height, but lots of other stuff done.

yeah, im thinking xj proally. though i like the disco's one early 90's range rovers. though peopel say they suck? i dont see how. how tall of a lift do i need to run? it will be a DD also. what about later land cruisers? what do you think? id liek to buy a good running rig for about 1500-2000 and build it into a good expo rig over a year or so.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Root Moose

In your price range, XJ is pretty much all you can do. You won't get a good TLC for that price range. You could get a decent FZJ80 for around $6-8k I think. Same with FJ6x. It will need some work though.

I think when you look at all of the costs involved getting a FZJ-80 with E-Lockers for 5k ( http://forum.ih8mud.com/vehicles-tra...ing-%245k.html ) is going to be the cheapest way to go by the time you get to the finished project. A factory locked 80 series is going to have a rear full float axle with discs, a fully boxed frame and big enough wheel wells to do this with 37" tyres:

The downside is that it is not going to be great on gas, I have a diesel 80 so that issue is not an issue for me.

I think you are being a little optimistic with $5k for a 80 with lockers. I'm not saying they aren't out there but...

There is a lot of service that needs to go into a 80 at that price range to make it expo ready.

Check out the ih8mud forums and do a little digging on the costs after purchase that some people have had to go through. If you do some research there don't get freaked out by the talk of head gasket issues on the 1FZ. I think that may be a red herring - kinda like the 0331 cylinder head issue on the last XJs. Sure, it happens but rare... and the fix is not a big deal if you can spin your own wrenches.

That said, I think the 80 just might be the one of the best rigs out there. They are a touch large but that doesn't bother me.

You'd be farther ahead cost wise with the 80 but low purchase price on the XJ means that you can upgrade incrementally and add stuff as budget allows. The 80 is a higher quality vehicle too.

thanks for all the info guys. i found a good beater fj80 that need some engine work and he will deliver it! im going to look into it. i have to look into things maybe. i dont know yet. im still open to any advice or opinions.

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